1. Field of the Invention
The subject invention is generally related to personal security alarms or panic button devices and is specifically directed to a personal alarm system having network communication capability whereby the user can generate a signal to a remote location from any monitored area.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are numerous devices that allow an individual to send a panic signal to a remote location in order to seek assistance when certain events occur. For example, many semi-invalid medical patients will wear a panic button as a pendant around their neck, with the panic button adapted to be manually pushed in order to signal a medical emergency. The button device then transmits a signal to a remote monitoring station for initializing a response. Basically, the device transmits a radio signal to a receiver and identifies the patient. The response is typically a telephone call to the patient's residence and if no answer is received, emergency personnel are dispatched. This system works relatively well if the patient stays near the identified telephone or remembers to inform the monitoring system personnel of his/her whereabouts if he/she leaves an identified area. A major drawback to this system is the inability to track the location of the patient. Another drawback is the requirement that the panic button be manually activated in all circumstances. In certain situations, it may be impossible for the wearer to manually activate the system, rendering the panic system ineffective.
There are many applications both in the medical field and in other fields where a personal panic alarm system would be useful, particularly if the alarm identified the location of the personnel and even more so if under certain conditions the system were automatically activated. For example, such a device would be useful in school systems wherein the teaching staff could wear the panic button device and immediately signal security and/or administrative personnel of an incident. This would be particularly useful if the system identified the location of the teacher as well as in many instances identified the type of emergency. To date, no known devices provide such features and capability.
There are a number of devices available that address location tracking. As an example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,276,496 discloses an optical system for locating a target within a defined area by comparing the received light intensity between the several sensors. U.S. Pat. No. 5,355,222 discloses an optical position sensor, wherein an object with a luminous transmitter is viewed by an array of binary-patterned sensors. U.S. Pat. No. 5,548,637 discloses a telephone-forwarding system wherein people are ‘tagged’ with optical transmitters, and stationary receivers located throughout the premises determine the person's location and nearest telephone extension.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,275,385 discloses a personnel locator system wherein people carry coded infrared transmitters throughout a facility. Zoned receivers detect the coded signals and determine the person's location. U.S. Pat. No. 5,062,151 discloses a personnel location system, wherein people carry coded infrared transmitters, which activate infrared receivers in each equipped room.
While each of the prior art devices address certain location issues, none of the known devices provides an affordable, comprehensive personal signaling and locating device.